Same-sex marriage bill now on table

AUSTIN — A Democratic lawmaker introduced legislation Thursday to legalize same-sex marriage in the state, 10 years after the Legislature proposed a constitutional amendment banning it.

Fort Worth Rep. Lon Burnam said he filed the measure as a Valentine's Day gift to all Texans.

If passed, the bill would legalize same-sex marriage once Texas voters remove the constitutional prohibition against it. Texas voters imposed the ban in 2005.

Rep. Mike Villarreal, D-San Antonio, noted the Texas proposals are taking place in the context of a larger range of activity around the country and the U.S. Supreme Court decision to consider the federal law known as the Defense of Marriage Act.

“It's in line with how the country is changing. With every passing year, public opinion is becoming much more accepting and tolerant,” Villarreal said, adding that he would expect the Supreme Court to strike down the federal DOMA “because a plain read of the U.S. Constitution” says that people are treated equally in the eyes of government.

“The other thing that comes to mind is on this Valentine's Day, though there's a lot of political movement and activity around this issue, what I think about is the fact that love transcends laws that men make, and you can't prevent people from falling in love and forming lasting bonds through legislation,” Villarreal said.

“I am hopeful that our state and federal laws will catch up to what many of us believe is right in our hearts.”

Former state lawmaker Warren Chisum, who sponsored the proposal that put Texas' version of the Defense of Marriage Act in the state constitution, said he hasn't changed his views and he doesn't think the state has, either.

“I know there's a big push, seems like, around the United States, but you know, I don't think Texas has changed their mind,” Chisum said. “We'll be the oddball of all of them, I guess. If everybody else in the country switches, I still think the view of Texas is a little more conservative than the rest of the country.”

Gov. Rick Perry's spokeswoman Lucy Nashed said, “The governor fully agrees with Texas voters, who made clear in 2005 that they believe marriage should remain between a man and a woman.”

Democrats already have filed three joint resolutions calling for a new statewide vote on gay marriage.

Nine states have legalized same-sex marriages and, on Thursday, the Illinois Senate approved another such measure.

Perry and conservative Republican championed the ban. None of the bills have much chance of passing the Republican-controlled Legislature, but Democrats want to vote on them anyway.